Teach me to be Cool
by feltongurl
Summary: Bit corny, but WELL.. The relationship between Draco and Hermione has reached its climax to the extent of.. liking each other. All because Hermione's not cool. Okay, it's VERY CORNY. I warned you.
1. Default Chapter

CAN YOU TEACH ME HOW TO BE COOL? Chap 1- UNREAL  
  
Draco rolled his eyes when he saw me. "Yuck, it's Granger! The Mudblood!" he said. I shot him a glance. I was used to his comments. I always heard them every day, five years in a row. He blocked my way. "Do that again." He said softly. I cocked an eyebrow. "Do what?" "You know, the glance thing you always do when I tease you. The one that makes you look like a fish." I drew in my breath. "What?" The putrid scuz just grinned. "A fish, you know?" I glared at him. I have no idea why, but he burst into chuckles. "That one, Granger The look on your face! That is so. . . so. . ." Ron suddenly appeared beside me. He looked disgusted at the way Draco was carrying on, laughing like that. "Pathetic." Draco stopped and flashed Ron a thumbs up. "That's right, Weasley! Pathetic! Just the word. Granger, have you any idea how pathetic it makes you look?" I elbowed Ron angrily. He threw me an apologetic glance. "Shut up, Draco." I snapped. "Let us pass in peace, away from you." Draco's thin lips curled into a sneer. "What a comment. Where did you get that, from the books you always carry with you? It's a miracle you aren't even hunched over from the weight of them." Before I could do anything, he ripped open my schoolbag, which was slung over my shoulder. Books fell out, plus my most treasured possession; my diary. He grabbed it, while my eyes filled with tears. How I hate him. He flipped it open and started reading. ALOUD. "Dear diary, I studied for my Arithmancy exam today, I think I'll do well tomorrow. . . How . . . how PATHETIC! No other word for it, sorry." He tossed it over his shoulder, looking me straight in the eye. "Loathsome fink!" I screamed, grabbing my diary. He grabbed it back, his gray eyes glistening. Through my tears I was kind of surprised. It was almost like he hadn't heard me. "Sorry, Granger. You are definitely miserable." He shrugged, tossing my diary between his hands and walking away. Ron, Harry and I were late for Potions. I had so much trouble fitting everything back into my bag and fastening the split seam with spellotape. Draco's lips were set in a straight line when we entered. "Late. . . " Snape said. "For the second time, Potter and Weasley, so let's make it ten times as much from Gryffindor, shall we? And Granger! My, my my. . .Fifteen. And for another second you stand there, two more. So sit down." I was working quietly on my essay when a huge wad of paper hit me on the head. "Ow!" I muttered. I looked cautiously at Snape before opening it.  
  
Granger, you moronic geek. You are a total loser.  
  
. I crumpled it up, looking around the room. Draco raised an eyebrow, smiling. He twirled my diary around with two fingers. "Malfoy," I said out loud. "I hate you." His mouth opened in surprise, and so did everyone else's. "Granger! Detention- stay." Snape said, without looking up from his desk. But I could see the trace of a smile on his face.  
  
I was still stuck in the git's classroom well after dinner. He'd ordered me to refill each and every bottle in his shop and classroom. Suddenly I heard a voice behind me. "Quite an unglamorous job you got there, Mudblood." "Shut up." I said, not bothering to look over my shoulder. I knew it was Draco. "You are uncool, do you know that?" he continued, ignoring me like he's been doing so for five years. "What's it to you?" I retorted, fighting the urge to throw a bottle at him. "I could teach you to be cool." He joked, chuckling. "Shut up!" I snapped, gathering some bottles in my arms. "So how about those lessons?" he asked. "I mean it." I kicked the wall. "Stop it! You're driving me insane." He stood up and walked to me, grinning. "I mean it." I poked him in the stomach letting down my load. "The only reason I'd learn to be cool is so you'd stop teasing me. But you're teaching me. So it does not apply." "Please?" I was surprised at the tone of his voice. It was like he was pleading me. "Why?" "Because if you won't, you won't get your diary back." He said, pursing his lips, daring me on. I gasped. "You can't! " What a jerk. I hate him. "Why?" he asked, bringing it out and flipping the pages, just to annoy me. "Erm. . . because I. . . wrote the name of my crush there!" I screamed, turning red. There. It wasn't a lie. But the moment I said it, I wished I hadn't. The corners of his mouth curled into a sneer. "All the more for you to take lessons from me." Draco said. "Because if you don't, I'll know who it is, won't I?" I gave up then and there. "Just do what you want so I can get the thing back." He smirked. "Good." I went back to my bottles. He just stood there, watching me. After a while I sighed and turned to him. "Don't you have to go to bed or something?" He shrugged. "Whatever. I'm not sleepy." I finished the bottles and grabbed my bag triumphantly. "I'm done!" Suddenly the Spellotape gave way and my books scattered again. "Draco, I hate you." I said, gathering them up. "You did this to me."  
  
He grinned sheepishly, but there was still the mockery in his smile. "Sorry." I decided to carry my books by hand and do away with the stupid bag. As we walked out, keeping distance from each other, he stopped me. "What?" I asked, exasperated. "Ever consider the fact the you look so. . . drab with all those books?" he said. I'm sure you don't need all of them all in one day. Leave a few, for heaven's sake." I clutched my books tighter. "I need them." "It's for your diary. . ." he taunted. "Fine!" I said coldly. "I can make do with three less." "And the way you walk." He continued. "Hold your head high, shoulders back." I decided to tell that animal once and for all. "Look. I'm a girl, you're a boy. I walk different, you walk different. And do you realize that you sound like a girl when you talk about my posture?" His eyes grew wide. "No way!" This was definitely not the Draco I knew. "I'm getting sleepy." I said coolly. "I'm going to bed." He waved the diary in front of me. "This is at stake, remember." I tossed my head. "And so are you if you torment me one more time. Bye."  
  
"You're late." Draco said. I'd just stepped out through the Portrait Hole, and there he was. Waiting. I snorted. "It's seven in the morning of Saturday. Almost everyone else is in bed." "Coolness and reputation cannot wait." He replied. I stared at him like he was a monster. We walked in silence for some time, not really knowing where to go. Suddenly he shot an insult at me, out of the blue. "Mudblood. Go back where you belong." I lost my patience. Who did he think he was, insulting me when I'd said nothing? "I'm wasting my precious time with you. Why am I even walking with you?" I yelled at him. "Whoa, Granger!" he seemed pleased for no reason. "You just don't go around blowing your top off like that. Try me." he crossed his arms. I glared at him. "I don't get you." "Throw and insult my way." That's when I said the most horrible thing I've said to anyone ever. And I meant it. Draco didn't stir. He just stood there, looked at me calmly. Not even a lip twitched. We looked at each other in silence. Then he grinned. "Way to go, Mudblood." I've never heard anything like that come from you before. If I said something like that, what would you do?" "I'd tell you what a -" he cut me off. "Drop it." he said sharply. "You ignore whatever comes your way, duh."  
  
"I've been trying to do that!" I exclaimed. "You won't buy it! I've been attempting to do that for five years!" "But you always blow up, don't you?" he countered. "Yeah, I do." I sighed. "Told you so." I changed the subject. "Where are we going?" He didn't answer. It was getting really cold down here. Draco saw me shiver and he tossed me his cloak. "I got used to the temperature here already." I gave him a questioning look. "You go down here a lot?" "Sure I do." He said, smirking. "It's my common room." I stopped dead in my tracks. "You want me to go inside? No way. I could be breaking the rules." "So?" he rolled his eyes. "This is a great way to test your people skills. Most of these people hate you because you're a Gryffindor. You'll have dozens of insults thrown your way." He looked happy. "You are impossible." I whimpered. He dragged me in mercilessly, saying the password. The few people who were sitting in the stone room looked up when we entered. "Hey, it's the Mudblood!" Blaise Zabini called out. "Why'd you bring her, Draco?" I glared at my useless teacher. He leered. "She's . . . a friend." Crabbe and Goyle whooped. I rolled my eyes, forgetting the reason why I was stuck in this place. "You are way off track." I snapped. "You'd both have brains before I agree to go out with this snot covered loser." "Hey!" Draco protested. But he flashed me a thumbs up. "So why'd you bring her?" Blaise pressed on. I smirked at Draco, daring him on. "Do tell us, Draco." I said. "Er. . . . " he stammered. "because, because. . . So I could. . . teach. . ." Whoops, I'd led him through the wrong track. "Really sorry, but we have to go now." I interrupted. I pulled him out of the common room. He growled when we got out. "You made me sound like a total washup." I smiled sweetly. "Just repayment for those five years of torture." We walked in silence. Then he spoke, softly. "Granger. . . ? I. . . I'm sorry. For those five years." My mouth dropped open. "You are?" This I didn't expect. He suddenly moaned. "Tell one soul about this and you are dead." "Sure, whatever." I replied. In reality I felt like jumping for joy. Doing a jig, kissing Crabbe. Draco Malfoy, man of insults had just apologized to me! Sincerely, too. Suddenly we ran into Snape, who was looking like thunder. He did a slight double take when he saw Draco and me together. Then he realized it was me and he clenched his fists. "Granger, do you have any idea of what you just did?" He snarled. I shrugged. Draco's habits were beginning to rub off on me. Snape exploded. "You exchanged the bottles in my classroom with the ones in my shop! All my valuable potions are lying in my classroom, where delinquents like you are bound to waste them on simple concoctions!" I covered my mouth with my hand "Whoops, sorry, sir. I'll replace them right away." He snarled. "No bother. Maybe after some deductions in your test on Monday, you'll know better than to be such an absentminded show off." That was so unfair! I opened my mouth to argue, but Draco shot me a look to keep quiet. I howled in anger when the old screwed up fink walked away. "Why didn't you let me tell him off?!" Suddenly I was mad at Draco, too. He stepped away from me, as though I'd explode. "He'd just get annoyed and do something worse, duh." "Oh. Thanks." Suddenly I felt stupid. I'd done nothing with Draco except to blow up and squabble. "Jerk," I asked, breathing heavily. Snape had really gotten me worked up. "Me?" Draco's eyes widened. "You, too." I replied absentmindedly. Draco sighed. I fell silent, expecting a comment or two to fire me up again. When it was quiet for a minute, I asked him. "Why?" "Why what?" he asked. There was a bit of hurt in his voice. "Why are you so nice to me all of a sudden?" "Because you are, too." He answered. "Gawd, this is getting sappy." I laughed weakly. "After what I said to you this morning?" "No prob. I said that sort of stuff to you and your friends before. Besides, I hear it all the time from my father." "Oh." I said lamely. 


	2. chapter 2

"Hermione, are you going out with Malfoy?" Harry asked me discreetly at lunch. 

I laughed. " What _are_ you? No!" 

"Then why were you with him last night and this morning?" Ginny interjected.

"Keep out of this, Ginny." Ron said warningly. She rolled her eyes and withdrew from the conversation that was making me blush.

                "Well, does he still have your diary?" Harry asked, frowning. 

                "Er. . . sort of." I answered. When Ron scowled, I took it all back. "Yes, it's with him, but the reason . . . why . . .I'm with him lately is . . . because I'm doing some things for him. And then he's giving it back to me."

                They seemed to buy it. Ron started fighting with Ginny after that and Harry just munched thoughtfully on his steak. 

                Draco caught my eye as I stood up. I walked over to his table, ignoring the whoops from the Slytherins. He turned around and gave them a warning look. Gosh. I never knew he had that much power before. 

                "What were they talking about?" He asked me as we walked away. "Your friends." 

                "They asked me if you gave my diary back and why I'm hanging with you lately. I told them I had to, to get it back. You haven't seen the last page, have you?" I asked anxiously. If he found out, I was dead.

                "No." he said, looking thoughtful. "You don't have to, you know." 

                "What?" 

                "I can give your diary back now, if you want. In addition, you don't have to be stuck with me all weekend, learning how to be _cool_. I'm wasting your time." 

                Okay. What had this impostor done with the spiteful Draco Malfoy? I swallowed. 

                "No, it's okay. Besides," I kidded him "My reputation is at stake." 

                He smiled. And for the first time, I realized it wasn't a smirk, or a sneer, it was a smile. The kind when someone's just said something nice to you, or vice versa. 

                "Do you really think I'm not cool enough?" I asked him. "Seriously." 

                He looked a little sheepish. "It's not that, I just wanted a companion. Besides, I like watching you blow up." 

                I rolled my eyes. "You've got Crabbe and Goyle. And me blowing up? Is that good or bad?" 

                "Good. You're cute when you do that. Like when I was little, I kept having these tantrums all over the place. Moreover, Crabbe and Goyle don't have brains, you said so yourself. I've been stuck with them ever since I was born." 

                I closed my eyes, trying to imagine a toddler Draco. It was hard. 

                "My hair was never slicked back when I was little. And I had little freckles on my nose." He added, as if he'd read my mind. 

                "No more coolness lessons?" I asked him, giggling. 

                "No more." He agreed. 

                "You know what's a bummer?" I asked him. "I studied very hard for that Potions test. It hurts to know that after all my hard work, I get a deduction." 

                He nodded quietly. "Snape's a git. I only please him for my father's sake. Can't you sneak into his office while he's out or something? You could probably add some points. You'll figure it out." 

                "I can't." I said. "He adds up the points of his classes right after checking and checks them again before he presents the grades to Dumbledore." 

                Draco blinked. "How'd you know that?" 

                "I overheard Snape talking with Mc Gonagall yesterday, when I was sorting out 

the bottles. You weren't there yet."

                "Oh." Draco yawned. "Granger, I'm a bit tired. Mind if I go to the Slytherin dungeons for a while?" 

                I waved a hand. "Not at all. Bye, _teacher_." I added while he walked away. 

                "I hate Snape, I hate Snape, and I hate Snape." I muttered to myself. Draco looked up from his book. 

                "Granger, shut up. Those words won't make your test okay. Snape sucks, and you can't change that." 

                I quieted down. Draco was reading our Potions book, which I'd read a month ago. I could hear him talking to himself. 

                "Ivy juice is essential to invisibility. . . Ivy juice . . .ivy . . .ivy . . ." he murmured. I kicked the loose dirt by the edge of the Lake. 

                "Sorry, Draco, that's nettle juice." I said irritably. "Ivy juice is good for only Levitation Potions." 

                Draco looked hurt. "Sorry." 

                "I hate Snape! I studied that a month ago and all my hard work ends up at the bottom of the Lake." I said in apology as I kicked more dirt into the murky water. 

                "He hates Mudbloods." Draco said absentmindedly, scanning the page. 

                Before he could compute what he'd just said, I grabbed his book and stomped on it. 

                "Shut up about my blood already!" I roared. "I'm a witch! I thought you were okay, but you-" 

                Draco tantalizingly knelt at my feet. "I'm sorry, G- Hermione! I didn't mean it- I really didn't, now give me back the bloody book-"

                As if the book were alive, it slid out from under my feet and fell with a plop into the lake. I fell on my bottom, half embarrassed and half amazed that I had just made Draco Malfoy kneel at my feet and implore. 

                Draco helped me up, groaning. "My book . . . I am done for. Sorry, Hermione." Ha added as an afterthought.

                I watched as a tentacle grabbed the book and pulled it into the water with a horrible sucking sound. Draco was too busy apologizing to me and lamenting about his book. 

                "Draco, it's okay." I said, feeling a little guilty. "You can borrow mine if you want." 

                He broke into a smile. "Thanks! Let's get away from here before any of us fall into the Lake ourselves." 

                We walked back to the Castle. 

                "Thanks for the book." Draco mouthed to me, grinning. I grinned back as I shoved a piece of egg into my mouth. It was Monday morning and Potions first thing. 

                _Okay, Herm_, I told myself, _get this over with. You can't do anything about failing the exam. _

                Draco, Harry, Ron and I walked to the dungeons together. I was surprised at the way they'd warmed up to each other. 

                I sat down at my desk while Snape handed me the paper with a sneer. I sighed and started writing. 

                When I finished, I scanned my paper to see if there was a bonus I could add, so that Snape's deduction wouldn't do so much harm. I couldn't find any. 

                Draco gave me a thumbs up. I'd helped him the day before. 

                It was taking forever to get out. If only I hadn't been so stupid about those bottles. 

                Draco's head was on his arms I think he was napping. I wished he were awake. Last Friday, when we'd fought, seemed so long ago. 

                "You passed the test." Draco told me after dinner. We were sitting by the lake, with no schoolbooks to distract us. 

                Oh. My. Gosh. "I passed I passed I passed! I can't believe it!" I squealed. I was so happy, I hugged Draco. He grew stiff, and then we laughed at each other when I let go. 

                "I can't believe I passed." I babbled. "How did you know? Didn't Snape deduct points? There was no way I could've passed." 

                "Easy." Draco said softly. "He did. I went in the classroom before dinner." 

                "SO?" I pressed. "There was still no way I could pass the stupid test." 

                He turned away. "I added the points again. I changed it. I followed his writing." 

                I was torn. "You scuz! He'll think I did that! He adds the points remember? I could hear him adding them when we left the classroom." 

                "I deducted those points from my score instead." He whispered. "Are you mad?" 

                Total silence. Then I asked, "_What_ did you do? You did that for me?" 

                "Yeah. I failed by twenty points." He said. His face was bright red. 

                "Thanks, Draco." I said unbelievingly. "I owe you a lot." 

                He shrugged unsmilingly, but I could tell he was happy. "Hey, your diary." He got it out from his pocket and handed it to me. 

                I flipped to the last page. My heart jumped when I saw the name I had written. "You can read the last page now." I said. 

                He knit his brows. "You won't get mad?" 

                I snorted. "Why would I?_ I'm_ letting you read it." 

                He read it swiftly, his gray eyes darting left and right. He smiled, his eyes growing wide in mild shock and surprise, looking over the diary and at me. For a moment I thought he'd laugh, rant, rave, or jump into the Lake, whichever came first. Then he edged closer me. I leaned closer still. 

                He slipped an arm around me and I leaned against him. "Jerk." I whispered teasingly. My diary lay open behind us, the last page exposed to all mankind. 

It read _Draco Malfoy. _

"Hey G- Hermione." He spoke softly. "Can Crabbe and Goyle get brains now?" 

Dun! Kaput! Finite! Like it? REVIEW!!!            


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